Loki
Loki, a.k.a. Lopt, is an Ás, the so-called "trickster god", and figures prominently in Norse myth as a mischievous figure, sometimes outright antagonistic to the other Æsir. He is described as handsome in appearance, but unreliable in character, although in some stories he appears as an ally of Thor. While he typically causes trouble, he also sometimes manages to fix it. Conversely, he has also committed some unambiguously evil acts, and has received his punishment by being bound to a rock under a venomous serpent which drips painful venom on his face. It's believed that at Ragnarök he will be set free and ally himself with the jötnar in their battle against the Asgard deities. A skilled shapeshifter, Loki can take the form of animals, and can also become female, as he was the mare that gave birth to Odin's eight-legged horse Sleipnir. The poem Lokasenna also mentions that he once spent eight years on Earth as a woman who "milked cows" and had children during that period. History Loki is the son of the jötnar Fárbauti and Laufey. He has two brothers, Býleistr and Helblindi, and a wife, Sigyn, with whom he had at least one son, Narfi. Some sources also suggest that Váli is another son of Loki, but it's more widely believed that he is a son of OdinThis matter is complicated by the fact that Narfi is also known as Nari and at least one instance in the Lokasenna where the text appears to refer to Váli by the name Narfi. It's possible that this represents a simple transcript error.. The most famous of Loki's children, however, are the three ones born from his relationship with the female jötunn Angrboða: the giant serpent Jörmungandr, the monstrous wolf Fenrir and the death goddess Hel. Loki is widely known as a deceitful, cunning and spiteful deity. He famously tricked the blind god Höðr into killing his brother Baldr, and it's generally believed that he also assumed the form of an old female jötunn who refused to weep for Baldr - as Hel had promised to allow Baldr to return to the world of the living if every being present wept for him. In the poem Þrymskviða, Loki appears firmly on the same side as Thor and the other gods, as the threat of the jötnar having stolen Thor's hammer seems to be affecting him as much as everyone else. The poem famously tells of how Loki found out that the jötunn Þrymr was willing to give back the hammer in exchange for being allowed to marry the goddess Freyja. In order to get his Mjöllnir back, Thor disguises himself as Freyja, with Loki disguised as a handmaiden, and the two are able to fool the jötnar and retrieve the great hammer. Furthermore chapter 44 of the Prose Edda relates an adventure in which Thor and Loki were companions and traveled together along with the young boy Þjálfi and his sister Röskva (both having been given to them as compensation for the boy sucking out the marrow of the leg bone of one of Thor's magical goats, which Thor regularly eats and resurrects but needs the bones intact to do so properly). As the four of them spend the night in a castle belonging to the jötunn Skrýmir, they face many challenges and battle opponents which later turn out to be the personifications of concepts. Loki in particular brags about being able to eat faster than anyone and is challenged to an eating-meat contest with a being named Logi, who is later revealed as a personification of fire. Despite appearing as Thor's ally in these tales, Loki's antagonistic alignment is most apparent in other sources. In the poem Lokasenna, Loki attends Ægir's party, first engaging in a flyting contest with the other gods, then killing Ægir's servant Fimafeng out of sheer spite after the others praised the servant's work. For this Loki was chased out of the party, but returned later to insult all the others present. In the ensuing discussion it's implied that Loki and Odin were on much friendlier terms in the past, but he nevertheless caused much trouble. For instance: Loki's son Fenrir was the reason Týr lost his right hand. Loki continues insulting everyone present by bringing up the most shameful things about each, until the arrival of Thor, who threatens to use his hammer Mjöllnir against Loki if he doesn't shut up. Loki responds by repeatedly ignoring his threats and insulting Thor, but finally agrees to leave, as he knows Thor's patience is about to run short. In spite of that, he is later captured by the Æsir while in the form of a salmon and receives severe punishment for his behavior, as he is bound with the entrails of his son Narfi (previously killed by Váli, who had been transformed into a wolf) to a rock above which Skaði placed a serpent, which would constantly drip painful venom upon Loki's face. From then on, Loki's wife Sigyn would stand by her husband's side collecting the venom in a bowl to prevent it from hurting Loki. Whenever the bowl gets full, however, she must throw its contents away and during these short periods the snake inevitably manages to drip some venom onto Loki's face, causing him to writhe in agony and provoking earthquakes. Other sources reveal that Loki is destined to remain bound until Ragnarök, upon which he will be set loose and align himself with the jötnar against the other gods. He will engage in combat with Heimdallr and both will be killed. In popular culture In The Mask franchise, the spirit of Loki inhabits the cursed mask famously worn by Stanley Ipkiss, among other users. Loki also appeared in the Marvel franchise as a villain. Contrary to popular belief, Loki is not the son of Odin (neither biological nor adopted) but might possibly be his brother, as the name of Loki's brother Helblindi has also been applied to Odin. However, Odin's parents are generally considered to be Borr and Bestla, whereas Loki is the son of Fárbauti and Laufey. In spite of this, Loki is incorrectly portrayed as a son of Odin in several media, including Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, the unrelated Hercules: The Animated Series, Son of the Mask and Marvel Comics. 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